When we grow up, we want to be Nicole Richie. The mom of two is in every sense an accomplished fashion industry veteran who runs her own jewelry and accessories line, House of Harlow 1960, and is launching her lifestyle brand Wylde Honey.

“I always knew that it was something I wanted to do,” she tells Yahoo Lifestyle. As a child, during her competitive figure-skating days, she was able to put that passion to work by designing her own outfits. “That’s when I first started getting into the whole concept that you could imagine something in your mind and then have it come to life a few short months later,” she explains.

Richie didn’t exactly map out her plans to be a fashion tastemaker. “I was somebody who was more of just figuring it out as I went,” she explains, revealing that at the same time she was starting House of Harlow, she was starting her family. “So for me, it was really just putting one foot in front of the other. I was just following my gut and doing what I loved and trying to figure out a business around that.”

Her biggest challenge: “Keeping your DNA within the brand and making sure that you keep your signature. Just really staying true to yourself and not falling into the idea of trends, another thing that I really try to stay away from.”

Richie doesn’t see herself as a fashion authority but as more a friend, offering advice to her clientele. “I don’t tell my customers how to wear things. I want to see how people wear everything. I love hearing stories of what people are doing with the clothes, with the scarves,” she says.

Nicole Richie (Photo: Getty Images)

While she’s currently focused on the launch of Wylde Honey, Richie is always on the lookout for her next move. The designer says she stays open to inspiration wherever she goes. “Whether it’s music, a color, finding something on your phone, finding a photo, pairing it out and having digital folders, just taking photos of everything that you feel inspired by. It all plays a role. It all comes together,” she said.